Status of Women committee  I think it would be a difficult question for me to answer. Of course, we collect statistics on people's wages, and often people will work for minimum wage. We see that in our statistics. To look at the impact of a set federal minimum wage, I think, would be an analytic step beyond that.

Status of Women committee  I would, but again, I'm not aware of any.

Status of Women committee  The statistics I presented here are a little bit less processed than what you're describing. They compare only the full-time wage of women and the full-time wage of men, and they don't control for differences in occupation or differences in other background characteristics. There is research that does that kind of comparison.

Status of Women committee  At Statistics Canada we're very careful to try to present what we call the “stylized facts”, the statistical results. We do, of course, also do research on the gender wage gap, which tries to get at some of the more causal factors involved. It's notoriously difficult to get at the causal factors, basically because we simply don't know everything about the pathways women are taking to get to the point where they are earning, and earning less than men.

Status of Women committee  Again, there's a bit of research around why the wage gap is narrowing. I think the narrowing of the wage gap is consistent with other socio-economic changes that are associated with women's participation in the labour market. Rising participation in the labour market and rising educational attainment by women would be important factors to consider when considering the narrowing gap.

Status of Women committee  Again, it's a matter of changes in society and in the way people are entering post-secondary education. Speaking to the statistics, I can say that what you say is correct, that more women than men are now graduating from university. However, it's much more difficult to say why that is.

Status of Women committee  I'm not aware of a study that focuses specifically on those issues. I'm probably not the best expert on the wage gap to answer that, but I believe we do have more statistics available at Statistics Canada on the gender wage gap according to different characteristics, such as occupation of employment and industry of employment.

Status of Women committee  I'm not aware of a standardized measure.

Status of Women committee  I can speak to that. One factor that's important to consider, when considering occupation and the gender wage gap, is the high proportion of women in public occupations, government sector occupations. Of course, these occupations are also mostly unionized. There are studies on the gender wage gap that explain the impact of unionization on the gender wage gap, and I believe it is an important factor.

Status of Women committee  We don't have statistics on the new Canada child benefit, but we do have statistics related to the previous child benefits that were available to families with children. I can say that they have a significant impact on the low-income rate and the numbers of women and children living under the low-income lines.

Status of Women committee  I'd prefer to wait and see the numbers. It would depend on the magnitude of the benefit on an after-tax basis and how that would.... You're right that the new one is not taxed and that the old one was taxable, or some of them were taxable. The UCCB, for example, was taxable. I think we want to look at the numbers when they come in and see how that all balances out in the end.

Status of Women committee  I'm going extra slowly just for that reason. For those of you who are following along, I'm on slide 4, which shows a graph comparing the entrance into STEM fields for girls and boys and women and men according to their grade 10 mathematics scores. Essentially, the graphic shows that even women with high grade 10 math scores were less likely to enter STEM fields than were men or boys who had high grade 10 math scores at the same time.

Status of Women committee  Good morning, and thank you. I will speak in English, but you may ask your questions in French if you wish. I have a presentation for you today. If you'd like, I can guide you through the presentation and inform you when I'm changing slides. I'll begin with slide 1. As Canada's national statistical office, Statistics Canada is responsible for the systematic and coordinated collection of data related to women and girls.

Status of Women committee  I guess you don't have a photocopier hidden in the back.

Status of Women committee  I think it would be helpful, but certainly it's not critical. I can try my best to walk you through it.